Cheri
A feminine name of French origin meaning "darling" or "beloved".
Name Census estimates that about 28,608 living Americans carry the first name Cheri. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Cheri today is around 59 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Cheri births was 1960 (1,409 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Cheri. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
Key insights
- • Compared to the 1960s, recent registration numbers for Cheri have dropped to less than 5% of what they once were.
People living today
29K
~ 1 in 11,981 Americans
Peak year
1960
1,409 babies that year
Average age
59
years old
1965 SSA rank
#3,594
Tracked since 1925
Gender
Gender distribution for Cheri
Out of the 36,074 babies given the name Cheri since 1880, 100.0% were registered as female. The name sits firmly on the female side of the spectrum, with only a handful of male registrations across the entire dataset.
Cheri as a male name
- Ranked #3,594 in 1965
- 6 male births in 1965
- Peak: 1961 (6 births)
Cheri as a female name
- Ranked #10,414 in 2024
- 9 female births in 2024
- Peak: 1960 (1,409 births)
Popularity
Cheri: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Cheri from the 1920s through to the 2020s, spanning 11 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 11,942 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1960s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Cheri by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Cheri during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Cheris live
The SSA's state-level files cover 50 states and territories. California, Ohio, Illinois recorded the most babies named Cheri, while Delaware, New Hampshire, Maine recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 668 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Cheri
Cheri is a French given name that has its roots in the Old French word "chere", meaning "dear" or "beloved". The name was popular in medieval France, particularly among the upper classes, as a term of endearment or affection.
The earliest recorded use of the name Cheri can be traced back to the 13th century, when it appeared in French literature and historical records. One notable example is Cheri, the main character in the novel "La Femme de Trente Ans" by Honoré de Balzac, published in 1842.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the name Cheri. One of the earliest known was Cheri of Paris (c. 1200 - c. 1260), a French trouvère and composer of secular music during the High Middle Ages. Another notable figure was Cheri Ebersole (1951 - 2021), an American actress and singer who performed on Broadway and in numerous television shows.
In the realm of literature, Cheri Blossom (1950 - ) is an American author known for her children's books and young adult novels, while Cheri Loven Huddleston (1942 - 2016) was a renowned American poet and essayist.
The name Cheri has also been associated with the world of entertainment. Cheri Caffaro (1956 - ) is an American actress and singer, best known for her role in the musical "Gypsy" on Broadway, while Cheri Oteri (1962 - ) is an American actress and comedian who was a cast member on the sketch comedy show "Saturday Night Live" in the 1990s.
While the name Cheri has French origins, it has been adopted and used in various cultures and languages over the centuries, reflecting its enduring appeal as a term of affection and endearment.
People
Cheri + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Cheri as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with C
Other first names starting with C with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Cheri: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Cheri?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 28,608 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Cheri going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 11,981 US residents.
Is Cheri a common name?
We classify Cheri as "Uncommon". It ranks above 98.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 36,074 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Cheri most popular?
The single biggest year for Cheri was 1960, when 1,409 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Cheri is about 59 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Cheri a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Cheri in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.